There’s a new venture fund in Portland that plans to invest in companies fixing problems that help make the world a better place.

Northwest Social Venture Fund is $20 million fund that will make series A investments from $500,000 to $3 million for companies making a social impact. Its goals are aligned with the White House Grand Challenges mission, which aims to tackle “ambitious but achievable goals that harness science, technology, and innovation to solve important national or global problems and that have the potential to capture the public’s imagination.”

Carolynn Duncan is the Founding Partner of the fund. Duncan, also the CEO of an education company called TenX, was previously with a Salt Lake City-based venture capital firm called Epic Ventures.

The fund is part of the Social Venture Society, a Portland-based private forum for those interested in how startups can help create social good. The group just put on its first Fast Pitch Portland event and awarded two Northwest companies — Litesprite and InStove — with $100,000 in equity investments. Seattle-based Litesprite, who we’ve covered in the past, is helping people overcome medical issues with video games.

Taylor Soper is a GeekWire staff reporter who covers a wide variety of tech assignments, including emerging startups in Seattle and Portland, the sharing economy and the intersection of technology and sports. Follow him @taylor_soper and email taylor@geekwire.com.